User Reviews

I was deeply moved by original version of this movie despite my survival Italian. Recently, I had the chance to see it again with English subtitles. Yes, indeed, watching as The Gold Rimmed Glasses verifies my earlier conclusion that it delivers a timeless story on rise of oppression and versatility of human emotions -- in the very negative sense-- depending on political climate, in other words, societal readiness for submission. Based on Giorgio Bassani's novel, The Gold Rimmed Glasses unfolds story of outcasts on two levels, social-political and individual. Set in 1938 Ferrara, Italy, those layers are interwoven beautifully. University student David (Rupert Everett), a wealthy Jewish family witnesses in great despair the rise of Mussolini fascism along with increasingly alarming racial laws and neighborhood hate and hostility. Staying calm on the eve of a world war becomes a virtual reality for Jews and anyone "different," which brings second layer of the story come into play. Played by Phillippe Noiret, doctor Fadigati is not a Jew but feels like one of the "others" because of his homosexuality. He wants his own life and keep cool as much as possible, however, the inevitable game of survival with rise of fascism haunts him in the aftermath of his boyfriend's abuse. In a poisoned atmosphere, where Mussolini finds alliance with Hitler, only David and Fadigati can understand and support each other. Dismayed by his girlfriend's decision to convert to Catholicism, David does his best to rage against changing times, whereas Fadigati yields to his fate. Under Giuliano Montaldo's direction, Phillippe Noiret and Rupert Everett are wonderful in their roles. They deserve extra credit by playing Italian characters considering former being French and latter being British. A great movie in Italian, I hope, The Gold Rimmed Glasses gets digital restoration eventually to receive international acclamation it deserves.

Italian masterpiece with Philippe Noiret and Rupert Everett

This beautiful Italian-French film by Giuliano Montaldo ("TopJob" (1967) with Janet Leigh and Robert Hoffmann) was based on the novel by Giorgio Bassani.

The story takes place in Ferrara in 1938. Italy has been fascist for a decade and a half. Unlike in Nazi Germany, Jews are tolerated here, but they have nothing to laugh about. The young lovers David (Rupert Everett) and Nora (Valeria Golino), who are part of a clique of friends, also feel this. As Jews, they are increasingly finding themselves on the fringes of Italian society. But there are other forms of discrimination too. The young boxer Eraldo (Nicola Farron) cannot keep up economically and envies his friends for their supposedly luxurious life. And then there is their former pediatrician, Dr. Athos Fadigati (Philippe Noiret), who has to hide his homosexuality with great difficulty. The increasing strictness of Italian politics, which increasingly has to make concessions to the German allies, is becoming more and more a test for David and Nora. Finally, Dr. Fadigati goes all out and dares to surrender to his love for the beautiful young man Eraldo, who of course not openly offers himself to him without ulterior motives. But that's just where the catastrophe begins...

This film presents a masterful portrait of outsiders in an increasingly hostile world. The film was shot on location in Ferrara and by the sea in Opatija, Croatia. Luca Zingaretti and Stefania Sandrelli can be seen in other roles. This very touching film was shown in competition at the Venice Film Festival in 1987.

The actors are all fantastic. In subsequent years, Philippe Noiret (1930-2006) was also seen in the Oscar-winning masterpieces "Cinema Paradiso" (1988) and "The Postman" (1994).

Rupert Everett, born in 1959, is best known as a close confidante of the singer Madonna (also seen with her in the video clip for "American Pie" (2000)). He also had great film appearances in "Chronik eines angekündigten Todes / Chronicle of a Death Foretold" (also 1987), "King George - A Kingdom for More Reason" (1994) and alongside Julia Roberts in "My Best Friend's Wedding" (1997).

Valeria Golino, born in Naples in 1965, started out in Hollywood after this success. She was seen alongside Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise in the Oscar hit "Rain Man" (1988). In the "Hot Shots" films alongside Charlie Sheen, she made audiences laugh. She also shone in French cinema alongside Daniel Auteuil and Gerard Depardieu in "36 - Deadly Rivals" (2004), which revived the French "polar" film genre.

Nicola Farron, born in Sardinia in 1964, has been somewhat forgotten. The good-looking actor was seen alongside Ornella Muti and again Philippe Noiret in "The Lover" (1988). Privately, he was engaged to Monica Bellucci from 1990 to 1995. In 2008, Nicola Farron appeared again in two episodes of the crime series "Kommissar Rex".

When this film was released in German cinemas in 1988, it was a phenomenon. Since 1982 at the latest, American films had taken over dominance in German cinemas. Italian films were hardly ever shown in cinemas anymore and were instead released on video straight away. Even Bud Spencer and Terence Hill didn't really do well at the box office anymore. A film as sensual as "Glasses with Gold Rims" naturally stood out. With its natural nudity (of women and men!) and the direct sexuality in some scenes, it could certainly irritate a cinema audience that was now used to productions from puritanical Hollywood with their Disney-like family friendliness. But one could also see with enthusiasm what sensuality and immediacy the cinema could be capable of. But the glory days of Italian film were over for the time being. The dominance of American cinema had not yet reached its peak.